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Atari Brings 'SuperMan' To NGC/GBA

Atari announced plans to release Superman: Shadow of Apokolips for the Nintendo GameCube and announced the upcoming Superman: Countdown to Apokolips for the Game Boy Advance ­ both titles are scheduled for release in March 2003. Developed by Infogrames’ Sheffield House and based on the Warner Bros. and DC Comics hit animated series, The New Superman Adventures. Superman: Shadow of Apokolips for Nintendo GameCube is a port of the successful version currently available on PS2, and also features voice acting by the original cast, a sweeping orchestral score and more than 30 minutes of stunning cinematics.

Superman: Countdown to Apokolips, also based on the popular animated series from Warner Bros., is an entirely new adventure developed specifically for the Game Boy Advance. As a prequel to the events which transpire in the PlayStation®2 and Nintendo GameCube titles, Superman: Countdown to Apokolips is sure to rivet handheld gamers with its fast action, isometric view, and full use of all of Superman’s amazing powers.

“Owners of the Nintendo GameCube and Game Boy Advance are in for a treat this March when we release two titles featuring the greatest super hero of all time -- Superman,” said Jean-Philippe Agati, senior vice president and head of Infogrames, Inc.’s Los Angeles studio. “The combination of great gameplay, not to mention new features and modes in the Nintendo GameCube version, familiar characters and an engaging storyline from the animated series are sure to make both Superman titles a hit with gamers.”

Superman: Shadow of Apokolips is a cel-shaded, third person action game featuring the World’s Greatest Super Hero of all time armed with all of his super powers. In the game, players are thrust into the mighty red boots and cape of the original super hero and the fate of the planet is in their hands. Darkseid, the most evil being in the galaxy, has enlisted the aid of Lex Luthor in his quest to destroy the Man of Steel. By providing Luthor with highly advanced Apokoliptean weapons technology, Darkseid has enabled him to create an army of nearly unstoppable Interbots. Just when Superman seems to have everything under control, cybernetic supervillain Metallo busts out of Strykers Island Prison, creates malevolent mayhem of his own. Superman must accomplish what no mere mortal ever could: turn back the irrepressible forces of evil and save the planet.

As Superman, players have access to all of his amazing powers from the moment they start to play, including flight, frost breath, X-Ray vision, super strength and many more. Players will make their way through epic battles with legendary super-villains like Livewire, Parasite and Metallo in either first-person or third-person play perspectives. Superman: Shadow of Apokolips’ mission-based gameplay combines action, stealth and mind-bending challenges, as players fly throughout 14 enormous, fully interactive levels.

Recreating the look and feel of the animated series took an unprecedented amount of collaboration between the developer, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Voice acting in the game is recorded by the original cast of the animated series, including Tim Daly as Superman and Malcolm McDowell as Metallo. Superman: Shadow of Apokolips also includes a sweeping orchestral score reminiscent of the TV show as well as more than 30 minutes of amazing cinematics.

New features for the Nintendo GameCube include:

New Playable Characters: Two new cheat codes allow the player to play through the entire game as either Clark Kent or Parasite.

New Item Hunting: A new secret item has been added to every level. Players that find and collect all of these items can unlock several brand new “goodies,” including a new cheat code that allows the player to freely explore Metropolis.

Explore Metropolis Mode: Players can now freely explore the city of Metropolis in an extra Nintendo GameCube-only mode.

Improved Boss AI: Bosses have become more intelligent making boss fights much more challenging.

Difficulty Settings: The game now features 3 difficulty settings: easy, medium and hard.

Enhanced “Making of” Movie: The player can unlock an extra long “Making of” movie which shows concept art, early prototypes of the game, animations tests and more.

Experience Enhancements: Superman: Shadow of Apokolips for the Nintendo GameCube now features support for Dolby Pro-Logic 2 as well as support for new video formats including Widescreen and Progressive Scan.